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Maybe she'd lost her mind. It was bound to happen.
She lost Jay. The one thing in this life that she couldn't live without and now that she wasn't under his control anymore, the only reason she could hold it together was because of the part of him that was with her.
A part of him was calling to her. Needing her.
She didn't question it because right now, whatever was calling her was the only reason she was hanging on.
Parking on the side of the road, she got out and looked over the hospital in front of her. A mental hospital.
"What are you trying to tell me, Jay?"
His killer got out and stared down the road in the direction they had just come from. "He's still back there somewhere."
She was more concerned about what was calling to her. Who was calling to her?
It was strong but not as strong as it had been this morning. It was almost like when she was a child and she knew Jay was sad or lonely. Whoever needed her in that hospital felt her too. She was sure of it.
I'm here.
There was no answer back, and she didn't expect one.
She climbed back into the dorkmobile and was about to pull out when Jay's killer jumped into the passenger seat. Since she was definitely about to leave him, she didn't bitch him out for being in the front.
At the next road she took it, and then the next one until she came up behind the hospital and parked in the trees.
"The only immediate danger is me killing you. Go keep me safe from somewhere else."
He got out without question and didn't go too far away before he sat under a tree. His gun back in his lap.
She was just beginning to wonder about her sanity again, when a side door opened, and several patients ambled out.
Most wore pajama bottoms, plain white t-shirts and slippers. Some wore robes.
There were seven in total and three nurses.
Two of the nurses talked while the other one went to the nearest table and started a chess game with two of the patients. Two other patients played with a ball, and one walked around looking up in the sky.
Out of the other two people dressed for bedtime, only one was looking in her direction.
When he started slowly making his way towards her, she got out and did the same. Praying the nurses didn't see her became a chant.
Reaching the gate and each other they started to walk along the gate.
He was tall and thin. Handsome with wavy dark as night hair. His eyes were unnaturally bright green framed by dark freckles.
When they got to the locked gate, they both stopped and looked at each other.
He was beautiful and so drugged that he could barely stand.
Echo?
He studied her, his expression not changing.
Tell me your name.
"Jason. Lagniappe. Are you going to open the gate or not?"
She eyed the pad lock before looking back at him. "How should I do that?"
His sad eyes watched her for a long moment before he turned back to the others. "Steven, could you come here?"
The male nurse came forward wearing a smile. If it was possible, he was even taller and thinner than the guy in front of her.
"Jason, you've been standing here for a few days now, want to tell me what you're looking at?"
"Tell him to open the gate."
"Tell who to open the gate, Jason?" The nurse asked.
She was still trying to get over the fact that Steven was acting like he couldn't see her, and it took her a minute to realize that the person she assumed was Echo, was talking to her.
I can't make people do what I tell them.
He frowned, his eyes still on her. "Then what are you chanting?"
"Jason, I think you're having one of your episodes again. Let's go back inside and I'll let Dr. Dutch know that you need him."
He felt fear, and that pissed her off. She didn't want him to be afraid of anything.
Could her prayer be keeping everyone from seeing her?
The thought was staggering, but she held onto the fence and stared at the guy who was trying to steer Jason away. "Open the gate."
He instantly reached for the key ring at the waist of his scrubs.
Once Jason stood beside her, she ordered the gate to be closed. "It's time for everyone to go in. All the patients are accounted for."
She had to take most of his weight as she tried to get him back to where she parked the van. The whole way back she waited for a signal to go up. Maybe some wild dogs to be let loose to attack them, but all remained quiet.
Once they were close to the trees, Jay's killer finally dug his head out of his ass and came forward to help get their guest to the van.
A hand caught hers before she could head to the driver's seat.
"Kael?"
"No, but I'll get you to safety."
Once inside, he climbed into the back seat and lie down with his back towards them.
Shrugging, at Jay's killer's unspoken question she went around and climbed in. She didn't know what in the hell just happened, but she was smart enough to know they needed to get out of here.
They also needed to stay out of cities and stay off the radar because she was pretty sure that what she'd just done was consider kidnapping.
Using her mirror, she eyed the boy lying in her backseat and somehow knew it was Echo.
Jay's Echo.
And she had Jay's powers and no Jay.
Crying, she covered her mouth and hoped that she could keep the van on the road so that the other occupants wouldn't notice her breakdown.
